captioning made possible by johnson & johnson, where quality products for the american family have been a tradition for generations good morning. i'm charles osgood and this is sunday morning. just three days to go before halloween. a night for witches and goblins and all manner of superstitions. and though the scary beings are out for just that one night, our superstitions go on all yearlong, defying reason and common sense. why is that? that's a question susan spencer will be trying to answer in our sunday morning cover story. >> reporter: from black cats to broken mirrors, horse shoes to

rabbit's feet, we are all susceptible to superstition. >> i think only 40% of americans believe in evolution. >> reporter: what percent of americans believe in superstitions? >> over half of americans have some kind of superstition that they believe in. >> reporter: so when was the last time you knocked on wood? later on sunday morning. >> osgood: knocking on wood is a strategy the white house contenders might want to consider in these waning days of a very close campaign. though he's not on the ballot, former president bill clinton is very much in the spotlight this fall in all sorts of ways. he talks about it this morning with rit a braver. >> president bill clinton. reporter: he may be the most active former president in history. >> thank you. reporter: but he worries about what will happen when his wife steps down as secretary of

state. you haven't seen that much of each other because you're traveling and she's traveling. >> it's one of my great fears. i'm afraid i'm going to bore her to death. >> reporter: ahead on sunday morning, keeping up with bill clinton. >> osgood: christopher walken is a real character who has played some real characters over the years. what is this veteran actor like in real life? with tracy smith this morning we'll find out. >> reporter: he scared us half to death. and killed us with laughster. now, christopher walken is going to make us cry. you don't do anything terrible in this movie. >> no, no. i'm really good. i'm a very nice man. >> reporter: we take a pause with christopher walken later on sunday morning. >> osgood: what, me worry? that's the motto of mad magazine

called mad. it's the sort of magazine mo rocca grew up reading. ♪ >> reporter: it's a good fact that the first magazine to ever make you laugh was "mad." and at 60 years of age, "mad" is still making fun of everything and everyone. >> we don't care who we're going after necessarily as long as they deserve it. >> reporter: ahead on sunday morning, "mad" magazine, older and not a bit wiser. >> osgood: anthony mason talks with singer norah jones. seth doane attempts to divine the secrets of the ouija board. we'll do our best to take halloween's number and more. but first the ed lines for this morning the 28th of october, 2012. the so-called super storm now bearing down on the east coast can potentially effect some 65 million people. sandy is currently a category 1 hurricane with 75-mile-an-hour winds. it's expected to make land fall

tomorrow night or early tuesday along the delaware or new jersey coasts. it's not just winds causing concern. sandy's storm surge is expected to be five to ten feet in some areas. evacuations are underway. it's already an unusually big hurricane. it's expected to join forces with other storm systems to the north and west of it. sandy has claimed 65 lives after churning through the caribbean. most of the dead in haiti. chip reid is on the storm watch in ocean city, maryland. >> reporter: good morning, charlie. as you can probably tell, the wind and the surf have really picked up here in ocean city. but it is still very unclear exactly where hurricane sandy will first hit land. so governors from north carolina to massachusetts have declared states of emergency, authorizing them to call in the national guard. at the home depot a few miles from the maryland coast worried snappers were snapping up

plywood, generators, flashlights and whatever else might help protect them from the wrath of hurricane sandy. >> where we are there's a lot of trees. right outside ocean city. so we're taping our windows. >> reporter: you're taking this very seriously. >> yes, we are. reporter: in delaware the governor ordered mandatory evacuations from coastal communities. in atlantic city, new jersey, officials plan to close the casinos and have ordered tourists and residents to leave town. new york officials worried that the subways could flood are considering shutting them down. but this storm is threatening much more than the coast. drenching rain, massive flooding, and even snowstorms are forecast all the way to the great lakes. about 64 million people are potentially in the storm's path. more than one in five americans. here in ocean city, maryland, the mayor is warning that severe flooding is likely. he's told people in low-lying areas especially in the south

part of the city to prepare to evacuate. charlie. >> osgood: chip reid, thank you. as for the latest on the storm's path we go to hurricane watcher meteorologist david bernard at our cbs miami station, w.f.o.r.-tv. good morning, david. >> reporter: good morning, charlie. we have the latest on hurricane sandy. sandy is continuing to move to the northeast at around 10 miles per hour, 75-mile-an-hour winds. no change in the expected intensity or the track. we're still looking for it to cross the mid atlantic coast line or the northeast coast line as far north as long island sound monday night into tuesday morning. that's when some of the worst weather is going to be. that's when the highest chance for significant winds that could cause power outages are going to begin to occur. >> osgood: meteorologist david bernard. thank you. sandy is turning out to be an october surprise for both presidential campaigns. with election day just over a week away, both mitt romney and president obama are canceling appearances and otherwise trying

to steer clear of the storm's path. a magnitude 7.7 earthquake rattled the western coast of canada early this morning. there are no reports of casualties or major damage. a tsunami warning that was in effect for hawaii has now been downgraded ending the threat of serious damage. in the world series last night the cold weather in detroit had little effect on the red hot san francisco giants. as they shut out the tigers 2-0. the giants now have a commanding three games to none lead and can take the best of seven series with a win tonight. today is mother-in-law day and the new study finds that 50% of americans who have mothers-in-law report that they have a good or great relationship with her. how about the 50%? now for the rest of the country's forecast. it will be cooler across the plains and down into texas. some heavy unnamed storms are likely out west. the week ahead looks mostly dryer once sandy has come and

gone. next, confronting our superstitions. and later, actor christopher walken. >> my son bought me a cadillac to

>> osgood: a menacing ladder, a black cat. perhaps i'd better knock wood before proceeding. no need to apologize if the approach of halloween makes you

extra superstitious. many successful people harbor superstitions aplenty. scientists find superstitions a rich field of study. our cover story is reported by susan spencer of "48 hours." >> announcer: sweeney strikes out swinging. >> reporter: casey dagle pitched in the major leagues. >> announcer: a 3-2 pitch to bonds. he struck him out swinging. >> reporter: his wife jenny finch upon olympic medals in softball. >> announcer: called strike on the outside corner. quickly finch is is ahead in the count 0-2. >> reporter: their proud careers were built on talent and, although they don't like to admit it, a little superstition. some of it pretty strange. >> before the game, i would always put my socks on a certain way. >> i would always put my bat bag in the same spot. my helmet. >> if we were the home team, i would go to the bathroom in the fifth inning. >> when it came down to it, i

had two favorite sports bras. i wanted that same sports bra for the game. >> if we were away team i would go to the bathroom in the sixth inning. even if you didn't have to go to the bathroom, you went to the bathroom. >> announcer: how about casey dagle. >> reporter: in baseball such routines are routine. legend wade boggs ate chicken before each game. pitcher turk wendell brushd his teeth between innings. and in the classic movie "bull durham," one player wore a garther under his uniform. >> the rose goes in the front, big guy. >> reporter: fans too have countless compulsions. ♪ very superstitious >> reporter: this new beer commercials pokes fun at a few but casey says his routines were no laughing matter. >> there's been times that you forget something or you don't do something and it's sad to say but it's panic mode.

it's horrible. yes, ma'am. i mean, thinking about it is absolutely ridiculous but when you're in the moment, i mean, it's not ridiculous at all. it's life or death. >> reporter: give me your definition. what is a superstition? >> a belief or an action that is inconsistent with science. it needs to be aimed at bringing about good luck or avoiding bad luck. >> reporter: count yourself lucky if you're not superstitious. connecticut college psychologist stewart says most people are. in a world where we prize science, it may not be something to be proud of. >> i think only 40% of americans believe in evolution. >> reporter: what percent of americans believe in superstition. >> over half of americans have some kind of superstition that they believe in. >> reporter: so more americans have some specific superstition than believe in he have heution. >> that's right. that's not a good thing. >> reporter: a new cbs news poll for sunday morning finds more than half of all americans, knock on wood to avoid bad luck.

16% won't open up as indoors. 13% carry a good luck charm. and one in ten avoids black cats. at halloween we even have a holiday that celebrates our superstitions. nowhere are they celebrated more than here at the blood manor haunted house in new york city where you're surrounded by snarling black cats and broken mirrors. better bring all your lucky rabbits' feet. >> just think of halloween as an advertisement for superstition. >> reporter: like any good advertisement, superstitions have the power to overcome your rational brain, says cornell university psychology professor tom gillivach. >> one of the interesting things about superstitions is their seemingly arbitrary nature. why 13? why black cats? don't walk under that ladder has

no rational bearing. but now you feel like... you're tempting fate. a bad outcome that befall you is going to be worse because you deliberately did something that people tell you you shouldn't do. >> reporter: and is the outcome likely to be worse? >> no. absolutely not. >> reporter: but here's what's really scary. he says our brains are wired to believe this nonsense. to find cause and effect where there is none. >> the baseball player who has this elaborate superstition about putting socks on in a certain order, he noted. he didn't try to remember this. the mind just registered that when he put his socks on that particular day, something good happened. therefore, that becomes hard to ignore. >> one game you go 4-for-4 with two doubles and a triple. well, every baseball player i know, almost, is going to think in their head, what did i do during the day today that got me

to go 4-for-4? well, if there's a couple of things that stick out, you bet the bank account they're going to do it tomorrow. >> reporter: that's an even safer bet when things are tense. >> so if you're just a more anxious person, you are sort of set up to be a little bit more superstition. >> reporter: jennifer at the university of texas in austin says superstitions grow out of our need to take charge of situations. >> we become very anxious when we lack control. one of the ways if we can't regain it objectively is to try and regain it per september ally. maybe i can't actually keep something bad from happening to me. but if i knock on wood, then i've done something. right? i've taken action. that can help someone feel less anxious as a result. >> reporter: when anxiety goes down, performance goes up. and that's when superstitions just may work. in one study, researchers gave golf balls to two groups of people. one group was told they had

lucky golf balls. the other was not. guess what? those with the lucky golf balls were 35% more likely to make their putts. so maybe jenny finch and casey dagle were on to something. between the two of you, who do you think is more superstitious? >> he is. i would say me. i was ridiculous. >> reporter: no need to feel ashamed. it's the season for such things. even the most scientific among us have moments of weakness. >> i will occasionally knock on wood. even as i tell myself this is not going to do anything. >> i'm not a superstitious person at all. but i was once on a flight coming home from a conference and it was a very turbulent flight. i don't handle turbulence well. a colleague was sitting next to me. he turnedded to me and said, stewart, did you notice we're sitting in the 13th row?

for a moment there, i felt like a little anxious. my heart rate went up. and then i realizedded, well, wait a second. if the plane goes down all the rows are going down not just the 13th row. but i think it shows we're all vulnerable to it. >> osgood: coming up, just what is it about a black cat? >> osgood: coming up, just what i turned 65 last week. i'm getting married. planning a life. there are risks, sure. but, there's no reward without it. i want to be prepared for the long haul. i see a world bursting with opportunities. india, china, brazil, ishares, small-caps, large-caps, ishares. industrials. low cost. every dollar counts. ishares. income. dividends. bonds. i like bonds. ishares. commodities.

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>> osgood: so where do our popular superstitions come from? the compulsion to knock on wood seems to date back to paying and times. when people believed trees were homes to spirits. spirits that could provide good luck for the asking. our weariness of walking under ladders is traced to the early christians who believed the triangle a ladder forms when it leans against a wall is a representation of the holy trinity and that walk through that triangle is blasphemous. religion appears to be the root as well for the belief that the number 13 is is unlucky. 13, after all, was the number of people who shared the last supper on the eve of christ's trial and crucifixion. the fear of black cats goes back to the middle ages when folks

associated them with witches and even believed that they were witches in disguise. the idea that breaking a mirror brings seven years of bad luck is a reflection, if you will, of an old belief that our souls dwell in mirrors. and that to break a mirror damages our souls. but on the flip side, horse shoes are considered lucky. because their shape resembles a crescent moon considered a sign of fertility by the ancients. just ahead, what the fates say. >> on rare occasion you'll get the bad guys. it's totally possible that they could come through a ouija board.

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>> osgood: to sit down as a ouija board is as good as asking it to talk to me. believers in the board and its powers can't wait to hear what it has to say. skeptics not so much. seth doane examines the ouija board from a to z. >> would i want my own kiz, if i had them, playing with a ouija board. probably not. >> psychic and medium chip coffee knows a little something about communicating with the other side and using a ouija

board. >> if anything started to get wonky or nasty, we'd end the session completely, say a closing prayer, and put the board up for a while. >> reporter: the ouija board is that seemingly innocuous collection of letters, numbers and words printed on a plank. the idea is is that you ask it a question and then the pointer, calls a planchette, spells out the answer. >> we of the culture love to have the crap scared out of us. can i say that? we love to be scared. that's my definition of the paranormal. you can't understand it. you can't explain it. but can't deny that something is going on. >> reporter: chip coffee should know. he talks on the dead or,... for, well, a living. $159 will get you super v.i.p. access to a seance like this one in chicago. and, yes, a signed copy of his book. he calls the ouija board a gateway drug to the paranormal

because it can get you hooked. >> they're very good influences out there. you know, benevolent, benign spirits, mom-and-pop garden variety spirits and ghosts. then on rare occasional you'll get the bad guys. rare as that may be, it's totally possible that they could come through a ouija board. >> reporter: now just imagine asking the ouija, is it safe to live surrounded by hundreds of these boards? what makes someone become a ouija board collector? >> something has to be seriously wrong with them. >> reporter: bob has 500 talking boards in his dorchester, massachusetts home. ouija, he points out, is a brand trademark. >> people who believe in the spirits believe what's happening when you put your hands on this is that the spirit is coming through you using your hands to push the planchette. >> reporter: the spirit is not coming through us right now. >> it might be a little shy. the scientific community believes it's something called idea-motor response. your hands are always slightly

moving. they never stay perfectly still. this allows your subconscious to take those moments and make them fluid. >> reporter: of course it's far more dramatic in the hollywood version. >> are there any ghosts in this house? >> reporter: by the '50s it was a horror film staple. >> do you, ouija,... laughing. do you ouija. >> reporter: on "i love losey" the planchette pointed to laughs. >> have you any success with the ouija board? >> oh, ouija board. reporter: how has this endured as long as it has? >> wanting to believe that there is something on the other side or that we can make contact is something that hasn't changed since 1890. >> reporter: 1809 was when the ouija was first manufactured and marketed in baltimore. today the city's museum of industry has an exhibit dedicated to ouija history.

>> this is a collection of ouija paraphernalia. >> reporter: catherine duncan is the collection's manager. >> no one knows that the ouija was from baltimore. >> reporter: this is a bit of hometown pride. >> yes. we're a weird town. >> reporter: pictures reveal its place in pop culture. >> it was considered a parlor game, a party game. >> reporter: norman rockwell's cover of the saturday evening post from may, 1920, depicted the ouija as a gateway to more than just another world. >> they're on a date more than likely. it looks like he's trying to take advantage of her more than he should be. >> reporter: legend has it the board picked its own name spelling out o-u-i-j-a. and now a bit of living history. stewart fold and kathy fold are descendents of william fold who owned and ran the company that popularized the ouija. >> i've always said to people, it's just a game. that's how my father felt about it.

>> if these things were truly the doorway of the devil, they won't be sold in toys are us. >> reporter: the game, birch explains, was sold to parker brothers in 1966 and is owned by hasbro today. >> this was just marketing. this was a toy, entertainment. the people who made this did not believe in the sense that this was contacting spirits. they just knew people loved to play. >> reporter: they knew they could sell something. and sell they have. tens of millions of them. >> a lot of adolescents and kids love the whel idea of playing with the ouija board. i mean, they made a pink ouija board for girls. >> reporter: the ouija board box, says chip coffee, might pose the biggest question. >> i know that there are those people out there going no, no, no, no, we don't want to use the ouija board. we will not have one in our home. not afraid of it. i just know that you've got to use it responsibly.

>> osgood: next, the many faces of actor christopher walken.

♪ >> it's sunday morning on cbs and here again is charles osgood. >> osgood: that's christopher walken being a real character in a 2001 music video for the song "weapons of choice." typical for an actor who has made a career out of playing one real character after another. he played it straight when he sat down with tracy smith for some questions and answers. >> reporter: i think people would be surprised that you're scared of things like flying. >> yeah, it makes me very uncomfortable. >> reporter: what else are you scared of? >> i'm scared of everything. reporter: really? sure. and i ti it's only sensible to be that way. not scared but nervous about, apprehensive, cautious. >> reporter: well, cautious might not be the first word that comes to mind for an actor known for going all out.

in a single seen, christopher walken can be terrified and terrifying. he's been hysterical and hysterical. in fact, in more than 100 movies, there are few things walken hasn't been and few roles, it seems, he's ever turnedded down. >> people have said to me, you know, you've made certain choices and so on. interesting choices. terrible choices. whatever they think. but the fact is i don't make choices. i never have. when it comes to working. >> reporter: what do you mean? i just take the best thing that comes next. there's no hobbies. there's no kids. so going to work is kind of it. >> reporter: it's what you do. it's what i do. reporter: he's been doing it just about forever. born in queens, new york, in

1943, walkens started dancing at age three. he worked in a bakery owned by his immigrant parents. walken says listening to them talk gave him his halting speaking style. >> both my parents had heavy accents. so did everybody they knew. it's a rhythm thing. people who speak english where they have to hesitate and think of the right word. i think it rubbed off. >> reporter: it didn't hurt. in 1963, he landed a part in a revival of the musical "best foot forward" with a teen-aged liza minnelli and other stage roles followed. by the early '70s i was working on the big screen. >> america, man, it's so beautiful. i want to eat it. >> reporter: he had a breakout moment when woody allen cast him in 1977's annie hall as her bizarre brother duane. >> sometimes when i'm driving on the road at night, i see two

headlights coming toward me. fast. i have a sudden impulse to turn the wheel quickly, head on into the oncoming car. >> why? ell, i have to go now, duane, because i'm back on the planet earth. >> reporter: and the following year it all took off with an oscar-winning turn as a tormented, small-town boy sent to war in the deer hunter. but if christopher walken's on-screen persona says unstable, his real life is is more fairy tale. he's lived in the same house in wilt on, connecticut, for decades, and has been married to the same woman since 1969. >> i've been married for, you know, nearly 50 years. >> reporter: fantastic. no kids. why no kids? >> i don't know. just kids are a miracle.

just never happened. >> reporter: did you want them. no. reporter: his off spring, it would appear, are his movies. when a movie gets panned, how do you take that? >> it's hard. i read reviews. i'm very interested in what people think and what they say. i take it very seriously. >> reporter: what do you mean you take it seriously? >> well, i want to know. i want to know because it has to do with, you know, my future. >> there's a development tonight in one of hollywood's most enduring mysteries. >> reporter: there was a different kind of press last year when, on the strength of new evidence, police reopened the natalie wood case. walken's one-time costar drowned in 1981 after an evening drinking with her husband robert wagner and walken on the couple's yacht. this year the cause of death was changed from accidental to undetermined. were you surprised that they reopened the investigation three

years in? >> yes. reporter: did you think it was settled? >> no. i didn't understand that. >> reporter: why they opened it again. >> still don't, no. reporter: have you talked to police about it? >> no. i've talked over the years i've talked about it. and the truth is that i haven't talked about it in 30 years. >> reporter: if they open the investigation again, are they reinterviewing everybody? >> i don't know. let me know what happens. >> reporter: over the years, walken's films have grossed more than $2 billion. >> my son bought me a cadillac today. i think that calls for a toast. >> reporter: but his voice has become a comedic cottage industry of its own. >> a lot of people do it. reporter: who does it best? you know, my wife says that kevin spacey... >> he's crazy that way. ... kevin pollack. three little kittens, they

lost their mittens. >> counties jay moore. it's too rhythmic. the sentences go like this. like poetry. >> when people do it in front of me, i usually don't know what they're doing right away. >> reporter: seriously? you can't tell it's you? >> no. and i think... i always think, you know, why are they speaking that way. >> reporter: besides his voice, walken's other trademark is his hair which he says he owes to a bit of advice he got long ago. >> i became friends with tony perkins, the actor. he said to me that's some head of hair you got there. he said you know what you do? just grab it every morning for five minutes and pull it forward. yank it as hard as you can. >> reporter: so you really pull on it every morning. >> i yank on it. i watch tv. it keeps your scalp loose so if you can keep it loose, you're going to keep your hair a little more. i've got a lot of hair for somebody who is 87 years old.

>> reporter: 87 years old. and now after a career spent making us laugh and cringe, christopher walken is poised to make us cry. in a late quartet, walken is the leader of a renown spring ensemble whose world is shattered after he's diagnosed with a terrible illness. >> it's my opinion that you are experiencing the early symptoms of parkinsons. >> wow. reporter: in the movie he's a convincing cello player and rarist of all for him a voice of calm. >> i'd like the season's first concert to be ply farewell. >> reporter: you don't do anything terrible in this movie. >> no, no. i'm really good. i'm a very nice man. >> reporter: and a busy man with more projects on the way. truth is, christopher walken

isn't really scared of anything. except maybe stopping. >> i ain't asking. reporter: in life in general, is there anything you'd want a second chance at? >> that woody allen thing. somebody said to him, how would you like to live on in people's memories? and he said, i'd rather live on in my apartment. >> osgood: coming up, halloween by the numbers. americans are always ready to work hard for a better future.

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this country say they plan to celebrate halloween this year according to a national retail federation survey. total halloween spending is projected to hit $8 billion. the average halloween consumer spending nearly $80, up from last year. more than 93% of children go trick or treating according to the national confectioners association. 63% of trick or treaters say chocolate is their favorite treat. followed by 9% favoring lollipops, 7% gummy candy, and 7% for those who favor bubble gum or chewing gum. as for the adults who hand out the treats, 41% confess that they indulge their sweet tooth from their own candy bowl. and finally, barack obama masks are out-selling mitt romney masks by a margin of 60 to 40 according to the costume marketer spirit halloween which

claims its unscientific survey has accurately predicted the last four presidential elections. time will tell. coming up, anthony mason with songwriter

♪ i waited till i saw the sun ♪ i don't know why i didn't come ♪ >> osgood: don't know why put norah jones on the charts back in 2002, part of an album that made her a recording star virtually overnight. this morning she talks with anthony mason for the record. ♪ sunrise, sunrise

♪ looks like morning in your eyes ♪ >> reporter: sunnies one of the most popular singers of the past decade. but norah jones still wishes she could change her voice. >> i've always wanted to sound older than i am. when i sing, i've always wanted to sound rougher than it does. >> reporter: have you tried to make your voice rougher? >> it's not worth it. i mean, yes, but it's not worth it. >> reporter: age doesity vent ally. >> age will do it. i can wait. ♪ come away with me ♪ in the night >> reporter: what she hasn't had to wait for is success. at 33, she's already sold more than 40 million records and won nine grammy awards. ten years ago her debut album "come away with me" made her an international sensation. it would become one of the bes best-selling records of the decade. ♪ come away with me and we'll kiss ♪ ♪ on a mountain top

>> reporter: you kind of get everything the first time. >> um-hum. reporter: what do you do for an encore? >> it's an impossible situation. you don't try to top it. ♪ i was thinking... >> reporter: jones did follow it with two more number one albums but she's also branched out. ♪ i don't know how to begin >> reporter: starring in the indy film "my blueberry nights." >> was this deserved. reporter: you felt totally comfortable acting? >> no. i was terrified. >> reporter: you ended up in this big kissing scene with jude law. >> which i did which i also had no idea about. >> reporter: you didn't know that was coming. >> no, but it was so fun. it all depends on who is waiting for you on the other side. >> reporter: and while her singing voice is still silky, her song writing can now be stinging. ♪ that's such a pretty name

>> reporter: on her latest album little broken heart in the song miriam, the jilted singer envisions murdering arrive al. ♪ i'm going to smile when i take your life ♪ >> reporter: it's a dark side of norah jones. >> it's the dark side of anyone. reporter: was there anything special that made you want to write that song? >> i don't know. reporter: there was nobody particularly you wanted to kill? >> maybe a combination of people. but that i that is not a threat. definitely fun to work that stuff out in song. i finally realized you just write from your heart and you just kind of go crazy. you go off the deep end. all those things make a better song. >> reporter: jones, who was raised in texas, moved to new york when she was 20. >> we don't quite have it organizedded well. >> reporter: you're not alphabetical. the record collection in the brooklyn town house she shares with her boyfriend shows her early influences were jazz. >> this is beautiful.

reporter: he willing ton and colonel train. >> i love both of them. reporter: so this is what you came to new york wanting to play. >> this is what i came to new york wanting to play. i wish i could play like duke ellington. >> reporter: she found work playing piano. >> my first gig here was doing, i guess, it was happy hour. it was the weirdest time to gig. >> reporter: she would make $50 for five hours: were you excited just to have the gig. >> i was so excited. reporter: even though she says no one was listening, but that could soon change. when she got a regular slot at a small club called the living room. this is 22-year-old norah jones playing there in 2002. her album had yet to be

released. ♪ you'll be on my mind >> reporter: within a year, the young singer's first record would sweep the grammy awards. >> come away with me, norah jones. >> norah jones. reporter: what did it feel like to hear your name called? >> it felt crazy because it was called by all these idols of mine like aretha franklin. >> reporter: jones, who took home five grammies that night. >> i can't believe it. reporter: which one is it? it's down there. reporter: she was still living in a little brooklyn walkout. were they selling rings when you were here? >> this used to be a hair salon. reporter: you were still living here when you got your grammy. you came home and this was in the newspaper? >> yeah. reporter: suddenly she was famous. grammy queen norah's $1400 brooklyn gig. >> for a two bedroom at that time it wasn't really that

expensive. >> reporter: you must have rebelled when they put your apartment in the paper. >> i was a little freaked out. reporter: jones hadn't been expecting much when she first signd with the head of blue note records. the story goes that you called him when the album sold two million copies and asked him if he could make it stop. >> i think it was one million. yeah, i said, come on. we've sold a million records. isn't that enough? it was just... let's just stop all this. this is silliness. >> reporter: can we tone it down? >> i felt a little overexposed and a little shy. >> reporter: it didn't stop. jones' debut album went on to sell 26 million copies. you were a little uncomfortable with the whole fame thing. aren't you? >> i was a little uncomfortable. i felt very confused about how to deal with people asking about my family and my dad. >> reporter: her father is ravi shankar, the renown indian sitar player and close friend of the late georgia harrison. shankar broke up with her mother

concert promoter sue jones soon after norah was born. there was a period of time when you weren't in contact. >> it's not that we had a horrible relationship. we didn't see each other from about 11 to 18 we didn't really talk. >> reporter: was there something special that precipitated you reconnecting with your father? >> he called and envied me to come visit him. >> reporter: what was that first meeting like? >> it was wild. i think everybody's heart was beating really fast. my dad's too. he was happy to have me back in his life. i was happy to get to know him. the thing is i grew up so close to my mom. we had been so close my whole life. she definitely was happy to see me reconnect with him. they've even made nice with each other over the years which was nice for me to see. >> reporter: at that meeting, jones also connected with her half sister who she had never met. >> how are you doing? good. reporter: did you know about her before then? >> i think i knew about her since i was nine. we're very close now. we've had a great 15 years of being sisters.

>> i want to eat him. reporter: you could see that when norah and her sister, also an accomplished musician, met up back stage this past summer. >> we look a lot alike in some ways and then not at all in some ways but we have a lot of similar mannerisms. >> reporter: it's taken a while, but the singer has made her peace with success. >> i've gotten a lot more comfortable performing. >> reporter: in the beginning you weren't so comfortable? >> i don't know what to say to the audience. >> reporter: after a decade as a pop star, norah jones is still surprisingly down to earth. >> sometimes you get out there and you feel like you don't have any clothes on all of a sudden. usually it's good. the audience gives you a lot of love, it's pretty easy.

( applause ) >> osgood: a dose of sheer madness is still ahead. but first. .. >> people ask me all the time, do you think you're doing more good now than when you were president? >> osgood: a talk with former president bill clinton.

>> osgood: bill clinton is is one of our form living former presidents. certainly the most visible this campaign season. in fact, he's never been one to languish on the side lines, as rita braver is about to show us. >> president bill clinton. william jefferson clinton. bill clinton. reporter: from politics to philanthropy, former president bill clinton is on a roll. ( cheers and applause )

his speech at the democratic national convention was a huge hit. >> we believe that we're all in this together is a far better philosophy than you're on your own. >> reporter: yet he even got mitt romney... >> if there's one thing we've learned in this election season, by the way, it is that a few words from bill clinton can do a man a lot of good. >> reporter: as well as president obama. >> you continue to be a great treasure for all of us. >> reporter: when he got both to appear at his annual clinton global initiative meeting in new york late last month. why do you think that's going on? what's happening? >> well, first, i think a lot of it is when you are out of office and you're out of the line of fire, you become less of a target. so people did me all the i'm, do

you think you're doing more good now than when you were president? and i say, no, but i understand why you think that. >> reporter: in fact, the good will that clinton now engenders is inextricably tieded to his good works. the c.g.i. or clinton global initiative brings together leaders in all sorts of fields, connecting private donors with public needs. it's been involved in everything from building the first cancer center in east africa to constructing affordable, energy-efficient homes in new orleans where the president teamed with movie star brad pitt. >> now the ninth ward, this place that has suffered a horrendous tragedy and decades of neglect, is now the premiere template for how we will build our communities in the future. i think that's an amazing success story >> we started eight years ago

and had this premise that people were actually dying to be asked to do something. and given some options that would make sense so that if they gave their time or money or whatever to a specific cause, there was a reasonable chance that something good would happen. >> reporter: and president clinton proudly told us at the c.g.i. meeting the organization has already touched people all over the world. >> we can measure things that have happened that have helped in some form or fashion 400 million people in 180 countries >> reporter: that's a pretty impressive number right there >> and the commitment if when fully implemented will be worth about $70 billion >> reporter: he says that not being president has made it easier to get some things done. >> in my current role, i don't have any responsibility for the

incoming fire >> reporter: so you can choose what you focus on >> yeah. i can worry about the trend lines more than the headlines >> you need to re-elect president barack obama to do it. thank you and god bless you. ( cheers and applause ) >> reporter: still he knew he would make headlines when he jumped into this year's political fray. i don't remember a president in my lifetime that has done this. why have you done it? >> because i think if america makes the wrong decision, it will have very damaging consequences. and i've done it more than anything else because i believe president obama has made better decisions than many people give him credit for. >> reporter: but he is aware that his political advocacy could have repercussions for his charitable works. you have had a lot of republican support for these projects. have you been worried at all that you're sort of... your sort

of reentry into the political world... >> yeah reporter: you have been? i was playing golf with unof my friends this summer. i thought i was going to talk him into voting for the president. he said to me, he said, "are you really going to give a good speech?" i said, "i'm going to give the best one i can." he said, "god, i hope you screw it up." so i'm worried about it a little bit >> reporter: president clinton seems to have mellowed. after a heart by-pass operation, he's become a vegan and an advocate for healthy eating for kids. and he's also able to look back with understanding, even at his former political enemies. >> it's easier for me to forgive people for things they did to me when they were trying to keep me from beating them. i got it. you know, it's just life is too short. if it has no bearing on tomorrow, i try to let it go.

>> reporter: of course there's a big question about what could happen tomorrow. or at least in 2016. you've been asked before. you've said you don't know if secretary clinton will run for president. but do you wonder why she might even want to, given how hard it is and how hard she's already workd? >> well, she may not. i say this like a broken roar. i thought when i met her, i think today she's the ablest public servant i ever knew. if she wants to run i'll support it. if she doesn't, i'll try to make her happy for the rest of her life. >> reporter: meanwhile, he stays focused on matters at hand. last weekend after hitting the campaign trail, mr. clinton made time to tour a recently retrofitted loreaal cosmetics plant in little rock in his

native arkansas. it's using federal stimulus funds to work with his climate initiative. >> when you hear people say, oh, the world would come to an end if we had to cut our co-2 emissions. you know, 50% by 2030. this whole company is going to do it by 2015. they're making money doing it. >> reporter: at age 66, william jefferson clinton says he feels happy and fulfilled. but he often seems to be pushing himself in a race against the clock. sometimes it almost sounds like you, you know, you're working... looking in the mirror and looking at your own mortality >> but i have all my life. keep in mind, my father was in his 20s when he died in a car wreck before i was born. you have to go back to my maternal great grandfather who lived to be 76 to find... any man who lived as long as i did.

to me i guess it sounds morbid or spooky to some people. to me it's just as natural as the water flowing. i feel great. i'm determined to live to be a grandfather. so i'm doing my best here. but i just think that the older you get, the more you think you want every year to count. >> osgood: what? him worry? just ahead. twenty-three billion dollars d over to help those affected and to cover cleanup costs. today, the beaches and gulf are open, and many areas are reporting their best tourism seasons in years. and bp's also committed to america. we support nearly 250,000 jobs and invest more here than anywhere else. we're working to fuel america for generations to come. our commitment has never been stronger.

what? me worry? those are words to live by for generations of readers of a certain magazine, words they'll forever associate with a character both comic and iconic. mo rocca has his story. >> reporter: with his jug handle ears and "what me" worry grin, the mascot of mad magazine is america's perennial smart al he can >> the interesting thing about alfred, he has no profile. everything you ever see with alfred it's dead on and he's always making icon tact with you >> reporter: he's like the mona lisa. >> this is our 400th cover which is all the covers we did prior to that >> reporter: john fakara is the editor in chief of mad magazine, which believe it or not turns 60 this year.

>> you wanted to do romney boo-boo >> reporter: he has been at the magazine for 32 years. >> we are the guys that were sitting in the cafeteria making fun of everybody. shooting milk out of our nose and doing all those other things. we just get paid for it now. i mean that's basically it. >> reporter: make fun of everything. that's pretty much the credo of mad. from film spoofs of jaws to those twilight vampire movies. to pot shots at politicians of all stripes. here's president richard nixon and vice president spiro agnew, famously dressed up like the con men from the sting. young readers weren't just getting a good laugh. they were learning to read between the punch lines. >> the thing about mad that's always been great and it's our one threat to the years is to question authority. to realize that most people are lying to you. even if they don't mean to >> mad readers knew that an ad for cigarettes was kind of a

joke. a sick one. >> only to expose pomposity and dumbness and hidden agendas. we don't care who we're going after necessarily as long as they deserve it. when dean had his meltdown when running for president, the dean scream >> reporter: a lot of it you would call silly smart. the rest of it, well,illy stupid and pretty darned funny. yes, that's george washington cross-dressing the delaware. >> mad was kind of very much and made very good fun of social mores of the time. >> reporter: graydon carter the publisher of vanity fair was an early fan. >> the one thing that mad did that wasn't just funny but to young readers, it explained things. it explained things in a very sophisticated way that your parents would never explain them in that it was even hard to find a teenager willing to take the time to explain them to you. >> reporter: for a long time mad was the only game in town.

but it soon inspired other class clowns to take up the funny business. from graydon carter's own spy magazine to the onion. >> mad magazine? reporter: to america's most famous ten-year-old. >> excuse me. is this mad magazine? >> no. it's mad mois he will. we're buying our sign on the installment plan. >> reporter: when i'm watching the simpsons, i kind of feel like it's mad animated >> i think that's a perfect analogy. clearly you can see roots from mad into the simpsons. in fact, you can sort of find mad everywhere but each generation takes mad and then i think reinterprets it. >> reporter: being parodied in mad can be a badge of honor >> i think a lot of people feel that way. it's sort of like a stamp you've arrived in pop culture >> reporter: others vfnt taken it so well. any celebrities that were spoofed that you just were

outraged, really angry? >> the only one that we really know was angry was irving b berlin >> reporter: in 1964 he was so upset with mad for parroting his lyrics to the classic blue skies that he sued for copyright infringement. the courts found in favor of mad and the right to parody was upheld. ♪ like a surgeon cutting for the very first time ♪ >> reporter: a ruling for which legions of comics are grateful. you member your first issue of mad? >> i do. i believe it was issue number 130 which came out in 1969. >> reporter: weird al yank vic says he owes his career making fun of pop standards to the influence of mad. >> mad magazine i think prepared me more for my current line of work than four years of college did. that's sort of ironic >> reporter: sales aren't what they used to be but not to

worry. at mad they're still spoofing the latest movies. political hijinks. and current events. and even at 60, mad remains as committed as ever to not acting its age. are you guys good at accepting credit for the influence that mad has had? or do you think can't take ourselves too seriously? >> we're like the typhoid mary. we've ruined several generations of kids. we were the class clown who sneezed and have been sneezing ever since >> osgood: next, left meets right. ♪ ♪ [ male announcer ] you've been years in the making. and there are many years ahead. join the millions of members who've chosen

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i need all the help i can get. that's why i like nutella. mom, what's the capital of west virginia? charleston. nutella is a delicious hazelnut spread my whole family loves. mom, have you seen my -- backpack? nutella goes great on whole-wheat toast or whole-grain waffles. and its great taste comes from a unique combination of simple ingredients like hazelnuts, skim milk and a hint of cocoa. yeah, bye. have you seen my -- yes. and...thank you. [ male announcer ] nutella. breakfast never tasted this good. with election day just nine days off, the terms liberal and conservative are flying thick and fast. what leads a person to choose one political stance over the other? personal testimonials now from contributors nancy giles and ben

stein. >> you know something if you liberals go on getting your way we're all going to hear one big loud flush. >> the objective of the liberals is to make america mediocre like everybody else who aspire to be like america. >> your cause only accelerates and only advances when devastation happens. come to think of it, that's liberalism. >> you see that? they make it sound like a curse word. it's not. it's cool. it's part of who i am. i'll say it loud. i'm a liberal and proud. here's why. from the oxford english dictionary. liberal: adjective. willing to respect or accept behavior or opinions different from one's own. i grew up in queens new york which by the way is the most diverse county in the united states. just writing on a subway is a lesson in acceptance. i went to college in ohio, worked in chicago, did tv in los angeles, and gave a funny speech once in fayetteville, arkansas, and get this. there are different kinds of

people. and they're fascinating. i mean i like myself but a country full of me, could that work? ultimately no. i'm a liberal. i love the mix of voices and the larger perspective. of or pertaining representational forms of government, rather than air to be arrests and monarchees. the united states isn't run by the wealthiest or by some sort of birth rite. we participate by our vote and elect leaders to represent us. president lincoln's gettysburg address is a constant reminder. the government of the people, by the people, and for the people. shall not perish from this earth. one person, one vote. that's a precious right. that's liberal. believing that government should be active in supporting social and political change. so there's the constitution. the founders built in the ability to amend it and to pass laws to form a more perfect union. things like, oh, abolishing slavery and segregation, giving women the right to vote and to

choose, repealing don't ask don't tell so regardless of who you love you can serve in the military. plus our government has programs to help level the playing field so that everyone can succeed. like the g.i. bill. the lily ledbetter fair pay act. medicare. pell grants. head start. unemployment. is there anyone who hasn't benefited from at least one of these programs? fairness. that's liberal. and tending to give freely, generous. okay. the generous part i've overdone in some relationships. working on that. but generally give ing is a good thing, right? in fact, there's a small town called liberal, kansas. founded in the late 1800s. and was thusly named because a land owner there named s.s. rogers was liberal in letting others use his well when there were droughts. giving. that's being a liberal. in my humble opinion, there's nothing wrong with that.

>> why am i a conservative? well, for one thing, probably many republicans today would not consider me a proper conservative. i believe in raising taxes. that's my sin. i believe in balancing the budget both by cutting spending and by raising taxes on the very rich by a lot since they can afford it and by the ordinary rich by a good bit. on the upper middle class by somewhat. we are not responsible conservatives if we leave a defaulted america to our descendents. and the budget cannot be balanced by small cuts in discretionary spending but in a much bigger sense i am a conservative because i am afraid of big government. the 20th century was by far the bloodiest century that we know of in human history. the murder of tens of millions by the nazis and the communists in europe and asia were carried out by governments claimed they were doing good things for the only people who counted.

the pure aryans or the prol tear yat are the inner circles of dictatorship. it was carried out by big roman imperial government. where government is big by definition the individual is small. that means his or her life counts for little or nothing. for me as a conservative, the protection of the individual life at every stage is the goal of humanity. not a workers' paradise not a racially pure state of supermen but a state where the protection of the ordinary human is paramount. i am a conservative not because i want to see a nation and a government where conservatives dominate but because in a phrase of my old pal conservative political writer, i want to see an america where there's totally safe to be either a liberal or a conservative. i'll add in my own words or a businessman or a worker or a white man or a black man or a latino woman or an asian woman. i am a conservative because i want a government big enough to

guard the nation and protect the truly needy among us but far too small to kill us or imprison us in groups or as individuals. america's great because of individual freedom. conservatives want to conserve that freedom. that is what we want to pass on to our generations to come. ♪ this is the car that loves to have fun ♪ ♪ it's got something for everyone ♪ ♪ the car of the future many have said ♪ ♪ 'cause at the pump it's miles ahead ♪

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>> osgood: here's a look at the week ahead on our sunday morning calendar. tuesday hurricane sandy, the so-called franken-storm is expected to make land fall somewhere along the mid atlantic coast. wednesday of course is halloween. thursday sees the 46th annual country music association awards in nashville. hosted by brad paisley and carrie underwood. on friday, the government issues its jobs report for october. the last major economic statistic before election day. and on saturday, supporters of public broadcasting are planning a so-called million muppet march on the national mall in washington aimed at defending sesame street and other shows from budget cuts. before we leave you this morning we're going to head one last time to miami and meteorologist david bernard at wfor-tv for the latest on this super storm we're bracing for here in the east >> one of the big concerns with

this storm is is the potential for a large storm surge. already a lot of evacuations are underway. we're going to have a full moon when this storm hits. that's going to add to the height of the tides and angle of approach will make it pretty dangerous as well. the onset of winds will begin during the day today with tropical storm force winds overspreading all of the coast line. as we go throughout the day on monday those hurricane force gusts are going to spread across all of the northeast. that bad weather is likely going to last right into tuesday morning at least. charlie. >> osgood: david bernard in miami, thank you. let's go to washington and bob scheiffer now for a look at what's ahead on face the'lucw!1 >> schieffer: good morning, charles. we'll have john mccain, chicago mayor rahm emmanuel and the latest on the franken-storm. >> osgood: thank you, bob, we'll be watching. next week here on sunday morning... >> yes, it's for real. ng stuff. companies have to invest in making things.

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sunday morning's moment of nature is is sponsored by... >> osgood: we leave you this sunday just before halloween at goblin valley state park in utah. where mysterious rock formations called ud us haunt the landscape. u.<

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